Blog entries categorized under

How much is faux stone, lick and stick stone, artificial stone, stone siding, or manufactured stone? It depends on what exactly you are after. There are many monikers for what industry professionals call manufactured stone veneer. Some of the leaders in the manufactured stone world are companies such as Cultured Stone® by Boral®, Eldorado Stone and Coronado Stone. These companies have been creating manufactured, light weight, nonstructural, architectural veneers for decades. It is designated as a light weight architectural veneer because of its ability to be less than 15 pounds per square foot. Manufactured stone is installed almost identically to natural thin veneer. A typical install involves going over OSB for exterior projects and drywall for interior projects. Starting with a layer of paper, then metal lath, a 1/2 inch layer of type S mortar (scratch coat) and then adhering the stone to the scratch coat with a 1/2 inch layer of mortar buttered on the back of the stone.

Often times, manufactured stone can be 30% to 40% less in cost compared to a natural thin veneer. Both manufactured stone veneer and natural thin veneer both have their advantages, but we are here to talk about the price of manufactured stone veneer. Before we can talk about the actual price range, it is important to understand how stone veneer is purchased and priced. Manufactured veneer is sold by the square foot and the linear foot. The term square foot is referring to the “flat” pieces of stone which go on the face of the project, as depicted below. The term “linear foot” or “corner” is referring to the corner pieces which are produced in an “L" format to return around the corners of your project. As depicted below.

The next important piece of information in the manufactured stone veneer pricing puzzle is the variation within each stone brand. Just like there are different types t-shirts e.g. crew neck, v-neck, long sleeve and so on, there are different profiles within each brand. For example, below is a picture of the profile “Dressed Fieldstone” by Cultured Stone® and a picture of “Country Ledgestone” by Cultured Stone®. As you can see, the profile (otherwise known as shape) can vary quite a bit, in size and thickness. The next aspect to pay attention to is the color. Just as you can have a red v-neck and a blue v-neck t-shirt, you can have a Wolf Creek® Dressed Fieldstone or a Wolf Creek® Country Ledgestone. The main thing to take away from this section is that Wolf Creek® is the COLOR and Country Ledgestone is the PROFILE or shape.

Now that we understand the options and the technical aspects of manufactured stone veneer, there is one last detail we need to cover before getting into pricing; packing. Manufactured stone typically comes in a few different ways. The most cost effective option is the “Large Box” option. The “Large Box” option is a full pallet of stone, usually containing somewhere between 90 and 110 square feet of flats, depending on the profile. A “Large Box” of corners will typically contain somewhere between 64 and 100 linear feet of stone. The “Large Box” option is more cost effective because it is essentially a bulk order and consists of less packing material. The “Small Box” option, as depicted below, is typically a size that a human can lift. A “Small Box” of flats typically contains anywhere from 8 to 12 square feet of stone. A “Small Box” of corners typically contains 6 to 8 linear feet of stone.

After covering all the pertinent aspects of manufactured stone, we can finally get into some manufactured stone veneer pricing. The numbers we are going to talk about are generalizations due to the massive amount of variables we have covered throughout this article. General price ranges can help you plan your project and help you understand where you may end up price wise when choosing a top-quality manufactured stone veneer. “Large Box” pricing for a manufactured stone veneer from a name brand company will typically run you somewhere between $6.00 - $7.50 a square foot for standard profiles (as of the date of this article being published and before taxes). “Large Box” pricing for corners will typically be somewhere between $7.00 - $10.00 a linear foot for standard profiles. “Small Box” pricing will typically be about a dollar or so more, per square foot or linear foot, than the “Large Box” pricing for flats and corners.

In the article we covered what exactly manufactured stone veneer is, we covered some industry terms, packing logistics and finally in the end we covered manufactured stone pricing. The fundamental reason for creating this article is to educate you, the buyer, and help you make informed decisions when starting your next project. If you have any questions and would like to contact C&C Sand and Stone Co., please do so by email us at info@ccsand.com or calling us at 719.577.9900.

At C&C Sand and Stone Co.'s main yard we have installed Pavestone's "Highland Free Standing Wall Fire Pit Seat and Circel Pit". It provides a great entertainment space for outdoor living. It is put together with 43 column blocks, 84 sqft. of Plaza IV pavers and 1 BBQ fire pit insert. The full package discount is available for $1,281.

At Coutura Design Inspirations where C&C Sand and Stone Co. has a beautiful stone, stucco and brick showroom there are many installations of stone and brick throughout the building. A nice look achieved by arching the Eldorado Stone Cortona ViaBrick lives upstairs in the conference room of Signature Homes by Steve Scott. The brick is about 3/4 of an inch thick and lays up nicely with type n or S mortar. A khaki grout has been used to soften the lines, bringing the grout straight up to the face for an over-grout look.

A great looking project we supplied the material for is a job done by Bandy's Landscaping. They used Borgert Products to make this patio and fireplace enclosure. The material used was Strassen Classic pavers and Strassen Tumbled retaining wall. It provides a sleek look with plenty of color and texture. The result is a multi level patio with a wood burning fireplace. Creating an outdoor living space can be fairly easy and extremely functional for entertaining and personal enjoyment.

C&C Sand has donated a piece of Eldorado Outdoor to Ft. Carson for their Fallen Hero's Family Center. Many people donated many products and services to make this happen. It is a beautiful place with a great view of the mountains. The Eldorado Outdoor grill looks right up at the front range.